Letus HD100 at DVinfo.net

Jim Giberti · October 5th, 2006, 05:51 PM

The powers that be may see fit to move this to Letusville, but this is mostly specific to the HD100 and I thought of possible interest to HD100 users looking at 35mm adapter options.

As an early owner/adopter of the Mini35 and just this week the new Letus HD100 I've got experience with the high and "low" the low end of this particular world.

In a nutshell, (as any one who's produced with the Mini 35 will tell you), there are certain compromises that you start with with this technology, and those compromises are that much more with the Letus (1.9 magnification of the 35mm FOV for instance). But given that the Letus HD100 mounts directly to the camera, produces an upright image, and costs around the tax on a Mini35, I had one built (with the locking Nikon mount) and have had a little tome to get it det up and tested.

So anyway, here's a copy of the letter I just sent to Quyen...the man who designed and builds the Letus.

<<Hey Quyen,

Good news overall.
I took some time last night to set up an accurate test with the Fuji and the Letus (shooting with a Nikon 35mm f/2.0 AIS).
First off I reset the back focus and found a bit of styrofoam that actually got lodged inside from the packing.
I used a Putora focus chart with Kino-flos with everything set up at the the proper distance and stop.
Initial tests showed the HD100 w/ stock lens focusing one level (out of nine) higher than with the Letus.
I had realized after our emails that I should try enhancing the Detail (sharpening) on the HD100 to compensate for any resolution loss with the Letus

After some experimenting I created a new setup for the HD100 with the ideal increase in detail, without any digital "edging".
I then re-shot the test and found that, with my setup, I could virtually match the resolution of the HD100/Fuji.
In other words, the right amount of increased Detail with the Letus restores the resolution just enough without compromising the image quality - very cool.

I also did extensive tests on the sweet spot of the relay and the critical combination of settings to get the least amount of grain or noise in moving shots.
With my setup at least, f/4 is optimum and even between 2.8 and 4 looked good.
And of course wide open to no more than 2 stops down on the Nikon is critical to have as clean a background as possible.

Even more than with the Mini35, you have to know how to maximize the settings AND feed it as much light as necessary to keep that ratio of "light, ND, prime, and relay".
Also I don't know if you realized it but the HD100 is that much more ideal for the Letus because the 2 stage ND filter is on the camera not on the Fuji and the Focus Assist feature also works through the Letus, making pulling critical focus very easy.

All in all it's a great little design you've come developed and a nice job of hand crafting.
I always needed two XL2s for day to day creative with the Mini35. It really wasn't practical to switch between the Canon lens and that whole setup, so I really needed to have one setup permanently for narrative and dramatic work and the zoom setup for sports and documentary.

What's great about the new Letus HD100 is that I can swap the system out in real time just as I would another lens and it's lightweight enough to use on the fly without rods.
Letus is good.>>

Abel Vang · October 5th, 2006, 06:15 PM

can you post some hd clips of moving people or things?

Ram Ganesh · October 5th, 2006, 11:41 PM

thanks for posting here... would love to SEE some snapshots...

Mike Marriage · October 6th, 2006, 03:08 AM

A mini35, letus35 side-to-side would be brilliant too!

Thanks for the info above!

Marc Colemont · October 6th, 2006, 05:20 AM

Can you also make some pictures of the setup of the Letus?

Jim Giberti · October 6th, 2006, 07:37 AM

I'll try and get some of this when I get a chance, things are pretty hectic right now. I could load some stills and try and get a clip onto my .mac site.

October 5th, 2006, 05:51 PM	#1
Jim Giberti Major Player Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Bethel, VT Posts: 824	Letus HD100 The powers that be may see fit to move this to Letusville, but this is mostly specific to the HD100 and I thought of possible interest to HD100 users looking at 35mm adapter options. As an early owner/adopter of the Mini35 and just this week the new Letus HD100 I've got experience with the high and "low" the low end of this particular world. In a nutshell, (as any one who's produced with the Mini 35 will tell you), there are certain compromises that you start with with this technology, and those compromises are that much more with the Letus (1.9 magnification of the 35mm FOV for instance). But given that the Letus HD100 mounts directly to the camera, produces an upright image, and costs around the tax on a Mini35, I had one built (with the locking Nikon mount) and have had a little tome to get it det up and tested. So anyway, here's a copy of the letter I just sent to Quyen...the man who designed and builds the Letus. <<Hey Quyen, Good news overall. I took some time last night to set up an accurate test with the Fuji and the Letus (shooting with a Nikon 35mm f/2.0 AIS). First off I reset the back focus and found a bit of styrofoam that actually got lodged inside from the packing. I used a Putora focus chart with Kino-flos with everything set up at the the proper distance and stop. Initial tests showed the HD100 w/ stock lens focusing one level (out of nine) higher than with the Letus. I had realized after our emails that I should try enhancing the Detail (sharpening) on the HD100 to compensate for any resolution loss with the Letus After some experimenting I created a new setup for the HD100 with the ideal increase in detail, without any digital "edging". I then re-shot the test and found that, with my setup, I could virtually match the resolution of the HD100/Fuji. In other words, the right amount of increased Detail with the Letus restores the resolution just enough without compromising the image quality - very cool. I also did extensive tests on the sweet spot of the relay and the critical combination of settings to get the least amount of grain or noise in moving shots. With my setup at least, f/4 is optimum and even between 2.8 and 4 looked good. And of course wide open to no more than 2 stops down on the Nikon is critical to have as clean a background as possible. Even more than with the Mini35, you have to know how to maximize the settings AND feed it as much light as necessary to keep that ratio of "light, ND, prime, and relay". Also I don't know if you realized it but the HD100 is that much more ideal for the Letus because the 2 stage ND filter is on the camera not on the Fuji and the Focus Assist feature also works through the Letus, making pulling critical focus very easy. All in all it's a great little design you've come developed and a nice job of hand crafting. I always needed two XL2s for day to day creative with the Mini35. It really wasn't practical to switch between the Canon lens and that whole setup, so I really needed to have one setup permanently for narrative and dramatic work and the zoom setup for sports and documentary. What's great about the new Letus HD100 is that I can swap the system out in real time just as I would another lens and it's lightweight enough to use on the fly without rods. Letus is good.>>

October 5th, 2006, 11:41 PM	#3
Ram Ganesh Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 175	thanks for posting here... would love to SEE some snapshots... __________________ http://www.wizedot.com

October 5th, 2006, 06:15 PM	#2
Abel Vang Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 49	can you post some hd clips of moving people or things?

October 6th, 2006, 03:08 AM	#4
Mike Marriage Major Player Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: NE of London, England Posts: 788	A mini35, letus35 side-to-side would be brilliant too! Thanks for the info above!

October 6th, 2006, 05:20 AM	#5
Marc Colemont Major Player Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Belgium Posts: 695	Can you also make some pictures of the setup of the Letus?

October 6th, 2006, 07:37 AM	#6
Jim Giberti Major Player Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Bethel, VT Posts: 824	I'll try and get some of this when I get a chance, things are pretty hectic right now. I could load some stills and try and get a clip onto my .mac site.